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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — to fit
  4. spring — a coil
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. degree — from a university
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bulb — for light
  14. spring — of water
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. spring — the season
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bulb — for light
  21. dip — to sink
  22. suit — clothes
  23. wax — to grow
  24. tear — from crying

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com